ALBANY — New Yorkers would rather have disgraced ex-Gov. Eliot Spitzer as the state’s chief executive than Gov. Paterson, who took office after Spitzer resigned in a prostitution scandal last year, a new poll has found.

The Siena College survey, released yesterday, also showed that more New Yorkers would prefer former Govs. Mario Cuomo or George Pataki than either Spitzer or Paterson.

Asked to choose from among the state’s last four governors, 39 percent picked Democrat Cuomo, 33 percent Republican Pataki, 14 percent Democrat Spitzer and 8 percent Democrat Paterson. The voters’ nostalgia jibed with the poll’s finding of record-low approval ratings for Paterson, who has vowed to seek election next year. The poll also found that, by 53 percent to 39 percent, voters want the state Senate to legalize gay marriage.